The Role of the Gut Microbes in Health and Disease

The Role of the Gut Microbes in Health and Disease

The human genome codes for approximately 23,000 genes, yet some experts have suggested that the total information coded by the human genome alone is not enough to carry out all of the body’s biological functions.A growing number of studies suggest that part of what determines how the human body functions may be not only our own genes, but also the genes of the trillions of microorganisms that reside on and in our bodies.

The genomes of the bacteria and viruses of the human gut alone are thought to encode 3.3 million genes. “The genetic richness and complexity of the bugs we carry is much richer than our own,” says Jayne Danska, an immunologist at the Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute in Ontario, Canada. “They serve as a buffer and interpreter of our environment. We are chimeric organisms.”

A role for gut microbes in gastrointestinal function has been well documented since researchers first described differences in the fecal bacteria of people with inflammatory bowel disease. The molecular mechanisms responsible for the gut microbiome’s impact on metabolism and diseases throughout the body remain largely unknown. However, researchers are beginning to decipher how the microorganisms of the human intestinal tract influence biological functions beyond the gut and play a role in immunological, metabolic, and neurological diseases.

Did you know that the only source of the vitamins E, D, K, and A are from a precise interaction between food sources and bacteria that live in our gut that release these essential vitamins for us to use?

The issue for all of us is our unique biodiversity, both as people and inside of ourselves.  While there is a general consensus as to what biological organisms will cause disease in most people, there are countless  examples of organisms found in people that cause little or no distress in them; the same organisms that would cause disease or death in someone else.

More importantly is how our immune system keeps dangerous and lethal organisms that live within us and with us (not to mention on our skin) at all times from causing any kind of illness.

The microflora that we live with helps us and can be dangerous, keeping our immune system in perfect running order is the only defense from problems.

via Blogger http://chiropractic-lane.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-role-of-gut-microbes-in-health-and.html